Books for christmas

[Kazz]

Anyone requesting or buying books for Christmas presents if so what.............:-D

[dandysmom]

I love cookbooks and cooking; am into Asian, and suggested to a friend that a Japanese cookbook would be welcome....If the new Doreen Tovey were in print here, know at least two people I'd give it to!

[yola]

The only book I'm giving is a hardback edition of Winnie-the-Pooh with original illustrations for Dominik.

I despair of the dreadful mess that Disney has turned 'Pooh Bear' into . . . and I want Domi to experience the magic of the A A Milne stories.

[dandysmom]

Yola, I have no kids, but I simply despise what Disney has done to the beloved childhood stories!! Generations of kids have grown up not knowing the wonder of them, I hope when Domi is older you'll get him a copy of "Wind in the Willows"! And Kipling;s "Just So" stories and of course "The Jungle Book"!! End of rant from opinionated reader!!!

[Kim]

I love the original Pooh bear stories, but confess that I also like the Disney versions too! (sorry!)

I have asked for a book about the history of the LSO (London Symphony Orchestra) How sad is that??!!!

[yola]

Eileen - I too hate the 'Disneyfication' of children's stories!

Kenneth Grahame, who wrote Wind in the Willows lived in a Thames-side village called Pangbourne. This is about 4 miles from where I live, and I drive past what was his cottage every day when I used to go into my office - which is a mere 1.5 miles out of Pangbourne :) .

There is also a Wind in the Willows museum in nearby Henley (you've heard of the famous Henley Regatta - right?). Well the River and Rowing Museum there have a section dedicated to this magical story.

Don't worry - we're both passionate about 'honest' children's literature and Dominik will be likewise we hope!


*Edit to say, Kim - don't apologize please, everyone's entitled to their own likes and dislikes. I don't mean to offend at all either, but it just happens to be a 'pet hate' of mine that's all ;-)

[Naomi]

I want a book called Marley & Me. I've read the condensed version now I want the full book.

My kids love Wind in the Willows. I've read it 3 times to them now :D

[dandysmom]

Kim, no offense meant, sorry! Yola: I practically grew up on British children's literature,,,hate to say it, but they're the best; only American author I'd recommend is Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House series (they ruined that on TV!); love the E. Nesbit books, Phoenix and the Carpet, Railway Children, etc. And The Water Babies, and The Secret Garden (although that may be a bit "girly" for a boy...) And Swallows and Amazons...Lord, I am rabbiting on....

[Kazz]

I love Disney....BUT adore books always have the people jump/step out of the pages.

I am thinking of asking for the Gordon Ramsey book?? is it any good does anyone know???

Oh Naomi I have heard Marley and Me issad at the end get the tisues ready girl.

Oh DM you are wrong about American writers... what about Mark Twain?? Tom Sawyer/Huckleberry Finn :)

And I like Edgar Rice Bupojna Tarzan books too
I adore Edgar Rice Burrows

[Kim]

Yola & Eileen - neither of you offended me at all - honest!!! I really can understand what you are both saying. I love childrens literature, The Wind in the Willows stories are enchanting, I love Beatrix Potter, The Railway Children, Tom's Midnight Garden and best of all the Narnia stories. My children grew up on these stories. But I just think there is something quite magical about Disney too. :D

[dandysmom]

Kazz, as you may know, we're going through a spell of Political Correctness here, and the Twain books have greatly fallen into disfavor because of his use of the N word! Ridiculous, but there it is! I grew up on Edgar Rice Burroughs also, the original Tarzan (another one ruined in the movies!) and the John Carter of Mars stories,,,and another author fallen out of favor: Jean Stratton Porter..Girl of the Limberlost. Maybe it might be fun to have a thread of everyone's 10 favorite childhood books,,,

[Kazz]

Go for it Eileen start the thread you always come up with such good thread ideas :)

[dandysmom]

I did that quite some time back, Kazz, and neglected to add "classic" children's literature...ended up with a lot of Goodnight, Moon and current stuff...you're the one who comes up with imaginatiive threads...!!

[Naomi]

Marley & Me is sad but quite funny at the very end. It's written so well that anyone with or without a dog can see the ups and downs of what they went through.

[dinahsmum]

I think Santa is bringing me The Thunderbolt Kid by BIll Bryson - about his childhood and growing up in Iowa. I've heard him talking about it and heard little excerpts. Love the bit where he talks about his mother who was not a good cook. His father re-named the kitchen as the burns unit! :lol:
I've got a couple of Mark Gatiss Lucifer Box novels for my son. Very funny, irreverend, rude and 'different' secret agent type literature for my son. OH is getting (from me) The Goldilocks Enigma, which is non-fiction and discusses how earth and all it contains came to be as it it. Also John Steinbeck, Sweet Thursday, which I didn't even know existed, and is, apparently the follow up to Cannery Row. DM - how can you put down US literature when there is Cannery Row and Steinbeck. One of my all time favourites. My paperback copy gets taken on holiday about alternate years and I still love it. It's getting a bit (a lot!) tatty and I love to read the price marked on the back - £1.95 :)
My BIL (a keen gardener like myself) will be the happy recipient of 50 Ways to Kill a Slug, :lol: ,which you've probably seen.
So, there you have it. Hope no-one of mine reads this - will spoil the suprise!

[dandysmom]

Sorry if you misunderstood my post or if I wasn't clear: what I was referring to was children's classic literature, not adult fiction. We hold our own with the best in the world there, but I've always felt that British writers do the best children's books! Probably because I was brought up on them!

[dinahsmum]

Yes - much 'skim-reading' been going on in this thread. :oops: I'm glad you're happy with your adult writers DM - there are plenty. My Canadian friend keeps pointing me to Canadian writers - I've found some very good ones from her. Many seem to evoke some long-lost, never known but 'there in the blood' 'old country'.
http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/3/3_3_5v.gif

[dandysmom]

Yes - much 'skim-reading' been going on in this thread. :oops: I'm glad you're happy with your adult writers DM - there are plenty. My Canadian friend keeps pointing me to Canadian writers - I've found some very good ones from her. Many seem to evoke some long-lost, never known but 'there in the blood' 'old country'.


Is Margaret Atwood one of them? She's a favorite of mine ..........

[alexgirl73]

I never get any books for Christmas, yet everyone knows that I always have at least 2 books on the go at the one time! Strange!!!
On the subject of childrens books. My 2 girls are avid readers and read far above their age levels. Raechel is reading Anne of Green Gables at the moment and has the usual assortment of Black Beauty, the Water Babies etc. She also dearly loves Enid Blyton, and has my old sets of the Famous Five and the Secret Seven (my mum held on to them for me). She collects modern series like The Babysitters club too and Goosebumps, but is like me in the respect that she will read anything!